Imagine working out on a stationary bike, winding your way through courses based on real roads while your bike adjusts to your speed, gear, and resistance. Then imagine racing against fellow riders in virtual reality.
VirchyBike LITE, available on Kickstarter, promises to deliver those experiences and more.
“Indoor cycling is one of the most popular cardio exercises, so there are many indoor bikes in the market. However, many are expensive and ineffective at motivating users to work out consistently. We believe that indoor bikes should promote fun and dynamic exercise,” VirchyBike LITE founder and CEO Jaehyun Shin said in a statement. “With VirchyBike, we strive to maximize the indoor cycling experience.”
The bike connects to a smartphone app via Bluetooth to offer personalized fitness coaching using artificial intelligence. Software tracks your workouts and takes care of scheduling, suggesting, and managing VirchyBike’s various programs based on your data and preferences, according to the announcement.
The Virchy Studio platform offers a number of live, virtual classes similar to those offered by Peloton. If your instructor says to increase the bike’s resistance, the bike can do that automatically. If you want a measure of your performance, you can compare yourself against your instructor. A fan that can be purchased separately also creates a wind effect.
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Based on images available on VirchyBike’s website, the rider sees only the course ahead of him or her, rather than seeing themselves biking on screen. A display shows the elevation, road grade, revolutions per minute, and calories burned.
On a more physical level, the bike can be adjusted both vertically and horizontally to accommodate all types of riders.
“Our mission is to make indoor cycling accessible and enjoyable to the masses. For years, we have worked to create an advanced AI product that will deliver this mission through a reasonable price, a safe and simple design and engaging features,” Younghyun Jo, VirchyBike’s marketing director, said in a statement.
VirchyBike LITE can be pre-ordered on Kickstarter for $399, a mere fraction of the price of other, similar indoor bikes. According to the announcement, the $399 price is available throughout the Kickstarter campaign, which runs until Nov. 2. The campaign has so far raised $36,595, far surpassing its $15,000 goal.
The bike is expected for delivery in February 2018.